By: Richard L. Smith
A Basking Ridge resident admitted Monday possessing multiple images and videos of sexually abused minors, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Federal officials said John Schulenburg, 67, pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge John Michael Vazquez in Newark federal court to a superseding information charging him with possession of explicit images of minors.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
In July 2019, an undercover law enforcement officer conducted an online session using a publicly available peer-to-peer program, which allowInternetet users to trade digital files.
During this session, a user shared multiple files featuring images of child sexual abuse from an internet address traced to Schulenburg’s residence.
On November 2019, law enforcement lawfully obtained a computer from Schulenburg’s residence containing hundreds of images and videos of child sexual abuse, including photos of prepubescent children.
Schulenburg was previously convicted of endangering the welfare of a child/possession of child pornography in Somerset County in 2013.
For a repeat offender, the charge of possession of explicit images of minors carries a mandatory minimum term of 10 years in prison, a maximum of 20 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine.